You’ve booked your couples session and now your thinking… “What do we wear?!”

Don’t worry, you’re both going to look fantastic for your photos because I’ve sorted out my top three tips to help you get started!

1) Think about the vibe you are going for and dress accordingly

With a couple’s photography session, the theme you are going for is probably going to be romantic. But romance can be expressed in different ways. It can look more intimate and cozy, relaxed and casual, or more dressy and date-night-esque. The vibe you’re going for is not only going to contribute to what location and activity you choose for your session but also what you decide to wear.

Here are some examples to show you what I mean:

• Maybe the feeling you want to communicate with your photos is the safety, intimacy, and coziness of your relationship. An in-home session could be ideal for this. So maybe you are making breakfast together and hanging out in your home for your session. For this vibe and setting, I’d recommend dressing pretty casually! You could wear comfy, cute pajamas or t-shirts and jeans.
• Maybe the feeling you want to communicate is how relaxed, happy, and casual you feel together. A sunset walk along Lake Erie’s shore could be ideal for this. I’d recommend wearing linens, a light dress, or jeans and loose shirts.
• Maybe the feeling you want to communicate is excitement and the fun of loving each other. Maybe you want to feel fancy together! A stroll around downtown or an evening at a local vineyard could be ideal for this type of session. I’d recommend wearing something dressier or, if you want, get super fancy with it!

Bonus Tip: Worried about looking too casual? Just because clothes are casual doesn’t mean they can’t still look good! One of my favorite ways to look dressed up without being dressed up is to wear a plain shirt or sweater with neutral pants or jeans.

2) Neutrals are your best friend

Super bright colors are usually not photo-friendly. Here are some reasons why:

• We want your faces to be the first thing you look at in your photos, but a bright color may be the first thing your eyes are drawn to instead.
• The color of your clothing can reflect back onto your skin. As an example, my husband LOVES this highlighter yellow shirt my dad gave him a few years ago. But it is such a bright color, when it’s in any sort of light, it reflects that yellow color all around it! So when my husband wears it, the shirt gives his face an odd yellow color cast that would make him look a bit radioactive in photos. It also would make me radioactive yellow if I were standing next to him.

Bonus Tip: If you want more light and airy photos, neutrals or pastels are a great option. If you want moodier photos, then darker colors are the move!

3) Be careful with patterns

When you are both wearing a busy pattern it can make your photos look a little overwhelming. Visualize someone wearing plaid and then their partner wearing bold florals. The image you’ve conjured probably feels a little overwhelming! It will also for sure look overwhelming in a photo!

This is not to say you and your partner should not wear any patterns though. Patterns can be really cute and fun! I recommend just making sure to assess how your clothes and patterns complement or compete with each other.

Bonus Tip: Worried about what you are planning to wear or need help deciding? Send me, your photographer, photos of the outfits you are planning to wear in advance, and I can help!